BOISE, IDAHO — D.J. Harper sliced through the CSU defense for an 80-yard touchdown run Saturday on Boise State’s first offensive play.

CSU cornerback Shaq Bell tried to chase him down but couldn’t catch him.

The Rams were several steps behind the Broncos all day long, falling behind by five touchdowns by halftime and losing 42-14 before a season-low crowd of 33,545 fans at Bronco Stadium.

Harper, one of 23 Boise State seniors honored before the final home game of the season, had 102 yards and two touchdowns by halftime and carried just twice in the second half while gaining 107 yards on 10 carries. Boise State quarterback Joe Southwick completed 17 of 20 passes for 216 yards and two touchdowns, both in the first half, and the Broncos built a 42-0 lead less than four minutes into the second half.

“They dictated,” Colorado State University coach Jim McElwain said afterward. “They absolutely came out, took it to us right off the bat.”

The Broncos (9-2, 6-1 Mountain West Conference) did pretty much whatever they wanted through the first 2 ˝ quarters and finished with 503 yards of total offense – 347 of it in the first half.

“It was very disappointing,” Bell said. “We missed tackles again, they capitalized off it. They kept running with their feet, they hit us with play-action a couple times and got the passing game going as well, so it was very frustrating.”

And the Boise State defense was even better, limiting the Rams (3-8, 2-5 Conference) to 33 rushing yards and only 52 total yards in the first half of the game and just 229 total yards.

Senior M.J. McPeek, a surprise starter at quarterback for the Rams, completed just 4 of 9 passes for 19 yards and was intercepted twice – essentially on the same possession. Jamar Taylor picked off one of his passes late in the second quarter and was racing toward the end zone on the return when he fumbled after being hit by receiver Joe Hansley. CSU guard Jordan Gragert recovered the loose ball at the Rams’ 16-yard line. Four plays later, following pass-interference and unsportsmanlike-conduct penalties against Taylor that gave the Rams a first down at their own 48-yard line, McPeek threw a screen pass right into the hands of Boise State defensive end Demarcus Lawrence, who returned it 8 yards to the CSU 37.

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“They just do what they do well, and we didn’t have an answer for it at first,” McPeek said.

Three plays later, Southwick hit a wide-open Holden Huff for an 18-yard touchdown pass that put the Broncos on top 35-0 with 1:35 still remaining in the first half. Backup quarterback Grant Hedrick ran for a 1-yard touchdown with 11:19 remaining in the third quarter to make it 42-0.

“It seemed like we were a little star-shocked, the blue turf and everything,” CSU linebacker Aaron Davis said. “We calmed down, got all our assignments corrected and came out in the second half better.”

They also came out with a different quarterback in Conner Smith, the redshirt freshman who McElwain said lost the starting job he had held for the previous three games with poor performances in practice leading up to the game. Smith completed 4 of 11 passes for 53 yards and one touchdown, on a ball he basically threw up for grabs on a fourth-and-12 play that receiver Marquise Law pulled away from the defender for a 30-yard touchdown with 4:09 remaining.

That touchdown was set up by a fumbled punt return by Chris Potter that Bell recovered at the Boise State 28-yard line.

Winning the second half, CSU players said, offered a little bit of consolation in their worst loss since losing 63-13 to the Broncos last year in Fort Collins.

“A year ago in this same game, at our place, we kind of threw our skirts up and let them run over us,” McElwain said. “I felt that our guys tried; they competed. I’m not happy with the results, but I did see some young guys take that to heart, and we’re going to find out this next week of practice and then next game who’s going to be the core people that are going to be on this ball squad next fall.”